Road Transport & Operator Compliance

We pride ourselves on understanding the commercial practicalities of road haulage work, not just the legal requirements. We know the importance of complying with regulatory requirements in the transport sector. Failing to do so will have a serious effect on any business, but our lawyers are well-positioned to protect you from legal action.

WHAT WE DO

If you’re an operator or driver facing prosecution by the police, or the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), we’ll represent you on a range of offences, including those relating to:

Operator’s licences

Drivers’ hours

Overloading

We’ll represent you in proceedings before the traffic commissioner, such as public inquiries and driver conduct hearings. Our transport lawyers can help you with every aspect of the public inquiry process, including:

Visiting your operating centre to discuss your case and advise on what steps you need to take

Rectifying the issues that have prompted the public inquiry

Representing you at the public inquiry and making submissions on your behalf

We can also carry out ‘audit’ style compliance checks to make sure that you’re working in full compliance with the requirements of your operator’s licence. This enables you to be pro-active and reduce future risk – it’s a cost-effective solution compared to getting it wrong and ending up at a public inquiry.

If you are subject to a public inquiry by the Office of the Traffic Commissioner, it’s important to be represented by a specialist transport lawyer. Because we’re part of a regulated profession (unlike transport consultants), our submissions carry more weight in court than those from other kinds of representatives.

WHY CHOOSE IRWIN MITCHELL?

Our team of transport solicitors offers a unique insight into the issues facing road haulage contractors. For example, Emma Windle holds a Certificate of Professional Competence in transport management, while Sarah Smith is an accredited specialist in hazardous waste disposal.

We advise clients from a range of sectors – including road haulage contractors, waste management, recycling, skip hire and manufacturing – on the fundamental considerations for an operator’s licence application. Our lawyers help businesses of all sizes, but we have particular expertise on the issues facing SMEs.

We’ll give you commercial and practical assistance on:

The centre you’ll be operating from

Employment of a transport manager and their required accreditations

The cost of making an application for an operator’s licence

Any potential issues with your application that might raise concerns within the Office of the Traffic Commissioner

We have experience assisting with all types of licence applications, so we’ll make sure your application is appropriate for your business requirements. Our transport solicitors help companies apply for, vary and renew restricted, standard national and standard international licences for many different companies within the transport sector.

RECENT WORK

Representing an operator at a public inquiry on concerns about financial standing and the revocation of a previous linked licence

Representing an operator at a public inquiry about concerns regarding vehicle road worthiness and maintenance of records

For more information on Road Transport & Operator Compliance

If you are interested in understanding how Irwin Mitchell can help you with your Road Transport & Operator Compliance work then please contact Emma Windle (Associate) on +44 (0)113 394 6778, or send us an email.

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We've Moved

Thomas Eggar is now Irwin Mitchell.
We have changed our name but we will continue to provide the highest standard of service to businesses and individuals delivered by the same people.
For more information about the merger, please visit the About Us page.